Jack Graham - A Hard Fought Hallelujah

Have you ever struggled with your faith? Sure, you have. If you have a faith, you have struggled at times to know what to believe, who to believe. When facing fears and doubts and dark-filled days, when you’re wondering why, and you’re asking God how much longer can we take this? Many feel like giving up and walking away. Yet when you know Jesus and you put your faith and your trust in Him, you can say what that song says. That no matter what circumstances I find myself, whether it’s easy or hard to praise God, there is a hard-fought hallelujah because it is well with my soul.

I like one of the chief lines of that song, says «I’m going to keep on singing till my faith catches up with my song, I’m going to keep on singing till my faith catches up with my song». At times we just keep singing it and saying it and keep believing and keep trusting until our faith catches us with our confession. Yes, this is all about praising God in the battles as well as the blessings of life. That’s what Habakkuk is about to praise God and celebrate with joy our victory in Christ, even when it looks like defeat, to triumph over those hard-fought battles. You know, faith is a battle. That’s why the Apostle Paul said, «Fight, fight, fight the good fight of faith»!

Keep fighting! Keep battling! Keep believing! And so today we meet a prophet whose name is Habakkuk. It’s hard to say. He lived 2700 years ago and yet his story is the same as our story. It’s a hard fought, hard felt, been through hell, hallelujah. Habakkuk is hard to find in your Bible, perhaps, unless you’re one of those Sword drillers, one of those Bible drillers. You can get there quick. But Habakkuk is among the minor prophets, but he faces a major problem. And it’s a recorded, significant message of the Bible, because we all go through what Habakkuk is talking about, what this song has been saying, and that no matter what trial or tragedy or hardship or struggle, that we can persevere through pain, that we can not only just get through it, but we can live through it with victory.

So Habakkuk wrote a song. And we’re going to get to that song at the end of this story. There are 3 chapters, it’s a short book. But he actually wrote a song about this. Though he was fighting through anxiety and anger and angst, yet he ends up on top, praising God. That even in the face of darkness, that there is reason to praise the Lord. The psalmist said, «I will bless the Lord at all times: His praise will continually be in my mouth». God says whoever offers praise, glorifies Me, magnifies Me. And so, yes, we praise Him at all times beyond our circumstances and conditions in our lives. I think the reason this song has hit so well in the world is because it’s so raw and because it’s so real. Faith is raw; faith is real, but it resonates with anyone who’s ever had a problem.

Anybody here never have a problem? Okay, then that’s all of us. And so in these 3 short chapters you see the prophet’s burdened. He has a burden. He fights these battles. That’s chapter 1 and chapter 2. There’s a breakthrough as he begins to understand what God is doing in his life. And then in chapter 3 we’ll see the blessing that is poured out. Habakkuk lived in a time when the nation of Israel was in steep decline. It was spiraling downward. Moral depravity, immorality, injustice, violence, much like the world that we have today. The questions, as well as the answers are still the same. And sometimes when we see all this going on around us, we ask, «God, why don’t you do something»?

That’s the question that Habakkuk asks in chapter 1 and verses 2 and 3. He says: «O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear?» («God, why don’t you do something? Are you indolent? Are you indifferent»?) Or cry to you «Violence»! and you will not save? 3) Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? («God, what’s wrong with You»? How do you like that rough language?) Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. This man is messed up! And the darkness of his days is getting to him. Describing darkness covering him.

Now, his name Habakkuk interestingly enough means to wrestle. It also means to embrace. So it’s like a fight, to embrace in a fight, a wrestling match. And therefore, his name matches his message because he is wrestling with questions that seemingly God’s not going to answer. He can’t get a clear answer from God. And so he’s wrestling. It’s good to know, isn’t it, that we can wrestle with the big questions of life and that God never turns away from the right questions of a sincere seeker.

This gets very personal, doesn’t it? We all have questions like Habakkuk. We all have burdens and battles that we’re fighting, even with God. Questions like, «God, why don’t you hear my prayers»? «God, where are You when I need You»? «How long am I going to deal with this struggle? How long is this pain going to be a part of my life»? Or questions like, «Why was my child born with a disability»? Or questions like, «Why did my career collapse»? Or questions like, «Why did my husband leave our family»? Or questions like, «Why did my spouse die»? Questions like, «Why did the cancer come back»?

We all have questions like these and many more. And «How can I praise God in the pain? How can I not help but doubt in the darkness»? Well, I don’t know. I don’t claim to know all the answers to these difficult, demanding questions. Philosophers have debated these; theologians. And frankly, we don’t have many of the answers to the imponderables of life. But I do know this: God is real! God lives, Christ lives, and I believe that He is generous and He is good, that He is gracious, that He is faithful. And so I’ve chosen to spend my life helping people discover the grace of God and grit in this grace when times are difficult. And the only think I know to do is to point people to Jesus and His Word.

I want people to experience God’s presence in the darkest of days and the cruelest of circumstances in their lives. And not end up broken and bitter and defeated and destroyed, but built up and blessed. So Habakkuk helps us here to embrace God, and to wrestle with the big questions of life. The severe problems of life. So, again, in chapter 1, the prophet is flat-out mad; he’s angry; he’s agitated. «God, do you care? God, are you competent? Maybe you care, you just can’t do anything about it». That’s the question people ask? «Is God good? And if He’s good, why doesn’t He do something? And if He can’t do something, then He must not be God».

So then God gives the answer to the questions. So sometimes when God gives you the answer to the question that you’re asking, you won’t like it. That’s what happened to Habakkuk. Look down in verse 5 when God answers his cry. He says, God says: 5) «Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe it if I told you». God says, «I’m working behind the scenes. You may not see it, but I am. And if I told you, you wouldn’t believe it»! I suspect that there are questions that we have that if God directly gave us the answer, we might not be able to take it. But God is doing something beyond what you could think or imagine. And He says in this case, He said, «I’m going to judge the evil nation».

You see, the problem was that an evil nation, Babylon, the Chaldeans, were coming against Israel, Judah, and God said, and you can read those verses on your own, verses 5 and following. You can read them there. God said, «I’m going to use these evil people to punish and discipline Israel». Now that’s not the answer he wanted, but that’s what God is about to do. And so He clears that up, chapter 1 and it’s a stunning response. «You wouldn’t believe it, if I told you». So what did Habakkuk do? Chapter 2, verse 1. Look at it: «I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint». (How he would correct me literally.)

So chapter 2, here’s a breakthrough. What did he do? He went outside and he climbed up on a watchtower, perhaps a place of prayer. We believe that Habakkuk was originally a priest who became a prophet. A priest of the Levites because in the end he writes a song about his story. «This is my story, this is my song, praising the Savior», what? «all the day long» We’re getting to that. So he climbs up on top of this tower to gain perspective and he contemplates and he considers what God has said and what God would do. He reviews the mighty hand of God, that God is holy, that God is mighty, that God is Yahweh, that God is faithful. But he steps up there, he steps into his breakthrough.

Are you willing to step into your breakthrough? You’re stuck in the pain! You’re stuck in the problem! You’re stuck where you are and you can’t… Step in by faith and walk up and take a stand! Because, you see, you don’t have to understand to stand, to stand on God’s truth and God’s Word. That’s what he did. He took to himself a place of prayer and found perspective. God’s perspective on all of this; what God was doing. That’s wisdom. When we’re hurting, we need God’s wisdom to know how to respond, what to do. What is wisdom? Wisdom is seeing things from God’s perspective. James in the New Testament said, «If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God». And that’s what Habakkuk does. And there he gains this new perspective as he waits on the Lord. Now waiting is hard, isn’t it? Not a fan of waiting. But that’s what Habakkuk did.

In verse 3, look at verse 3, Habakkuk 2: 3) For still the vision awaits its appointed time, (In other words, what God is going to do, there is an appointed time and a place for this) it hastens to the end-it will not lie. (How do we know this? Because God does not lie. God never breaks His promise. And), if it seems slow, (Who thinks the answer is coming slow today for you?) If it seems slow, wait for it (wait) for it will surely come; (And when it comes, it will be a breakthrough); it won’t delay. By God’s grace you could be very near your breakthrough moment today. The miracle of the moment that you’ve been waiting for. But whether it is today or tomorrow, God has timing; His timing is perfect and He knows his is hard to do; to wait and just watch.

Basically, Habakkuk has been doing all this talking. He’s running his mouth with God. And ultimately, when God gave him that word, he decided to shut up and listen. And so he stands there and he prays and he ponders. It’s hard to do it, to wait on God, but it’s one of the most important things you can do. Sometimes even to physical, just get outside, get out of that closed-in room and get outside and look up to the beautiful creation, or go to a place of prayer. Get to a place where you can listen to God! It’s such a noisy world and the narrative of the world is this and that, but I want to know what does God have to say? And the only way we can do that is to stand up on His Word and to trust Him. And that is when we discover that God is gracious, that God is faithful.

And when we stand there, we can’t hardly even lift our hands, they’re so heavy, we hold them up anyway. No matter what we’re fighting and what we’re facing, we hold up holy hands of prayer. And then God works in His own time and His own way. I assure you that the answer is on the way. It was for Habakkuk and it is for you. There’s a little chorus we used to sing years ago, «I believe the answers on the way, I believe the Lord has heard me pray». Do you believe that? Verse 4 is the major message really of everything, that ties everything together, that answers the big, big question, because verse 4 says: «the just shall live by His faith».

Now this verse is quoted numerous times in the Bible, including the New Testament, «The just shall live by faith». And it’s this verse in the book of Romans that rocked the world with the reformation led by Martin Luther. «The just shall live by faith». Here is given, «the just shall live by His faithfulness». What God has promised, that God is proven trustworthy. That’s how we look. So the bottom line is either you trust God or you don’t. I’m just going to let that sit. You either believe what God says about you or about Himself or you don’t. So decide. Because faith fleshed out means that I take God at His Word. That I don’t live my life according to explanations, but promises.

What God has said. And this is how pain turns to praise. This is how condemnation turns to adoration. This is how a hard-fought, heart-felt, been to hell experience becomes a hallelujah; because the just shall live by His faithfulness. That’s what the man learned when he listened. And that’s what we’re teaching us today. The just shall live by His faithfulness. He’s been faithful to me and to you. So that’s why we worship at times through tears no matter what. And so in chapter 3, he’s all shook up by now. Sounds like Elvis, doesn’t it? He’s all shook up. He’s quivering. He’s got a quiver in his liver. He’s trembling when he realizes this and he begins to contemplate the greatness of God and the power of God and the mightiness of God. And then, you know, praise is faith turned outward.

When we praise God, even when singing songs in the congregation, we are turning our faith from inward to outward. And so he’s turning his praise outward and he’s praising God. And he says in chapter 3, verses 17 and 19, This is what you’ve been waiting for. Here’s his song, the hard-fought hallelujah. «And though the fig tree should not blossom (This is an apex scripture in the Bible) nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, and the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls». In other words, nothings happening. I don’t have anything! But God is enough! Have you learned this? That when you don’t have enough, God is enough!

So that’s why he turns it to a hallelujah. He said: 18) yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. Paul said, «Rejoice in the Lord always, and again, I say rejoice». The word joy in the Hebrew language in which this was written, this word joy, it literally means jumping up and down, jumping up and down; turn around and around and around! He’s dancing now! He’s leaping and dancing and praising God because now he knows that God through his pain is helping him to persevere and pushing him to a new level. He’s spinning around. Instead of spiraling downward, he’s spiraling upward. We look at our problems, and because of Jesus, we don’t lose our faith, we gain our faith.

We live by His faithfulness. Even though there are things we cannot explain, and there are hurts so deep that we cannot express, and yet there’s joy in Jesus. The night before His crucifixion, before the most painful unimaginable, horrible death, Jesus said to His disciples in the upper room, «My joy I give to you». And then they sang a song after that Lord’s Supper. They praised God and Jesus went to the cross. This is His joy. So God knows, God cares. God’s not indifferent. God’s not idle. He broke through and our suffering is redeemed by the resurrection, by the cross and the resurrection. And therefore, we live by His faithfulness, what He has done He’s done for us.

And so, He closes; He says down in verse 19, «God, the Lord, Yahweh, is my strength; He makes my feet like the deer’s (the gazelle); He makes me tread on my high places. To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments».

He closes with, after he writes his song, he hands it to Michael Neil and says, «Sing this». That when you have nothing at all, even if it all falls apart, God, I think of the words of Job who went through so much and lost so much and yet, lived his faith. And he said, «God, though You slay me, yet will I trust You». And those three Hebrew children, those young men who refuse to bow down to the idol of the king. They said, «We may burn in that fiery furnace, but we believe our God is able to deliver us. We believe our God will deliver us». And then they said, «But if not, if we burn in that furnace, we’re still going to obey God and not man». Give that to the choirmaster and let’s sing it. «It is well, it is well, it is well with my soul».`